


The Golden King

by cheshireArcher, TheMalhamBird



Category: 14th Century CE RPF, Richard II - Shakespeare, The Golden Bough: A Study of Magic and Religion - James George Frazer
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Angst, F/M, Folklore, Hunters & Hunting, M/M, Magic, Motif A192, Multi, Old Gods, Ritual Murder, finally I have a use for that religious studies minor and it is fanfiction, maybe shades of The Waste Land?, the Dying God, the white hart, there will be fluff I promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-29
Updated: 2019-07-29
Packaged: 2020-07-08 08:30:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19866571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cheshireArcher/pseuds/cheshireArcher, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMalhamBird/pseuds/TheMalhamBird
Summary: The legends say that winter begins when the god of the forest is killed and spring begins when he's resurrected.





	The Golden King

**Author's Note:**

> This is a continuation of the Old God/animal transformation/magic AU TheMalhamBird and I have been developing, focusing mostly on its divine permutations and the various theogonies we've discussed. A lot of this is based on the Dying-and-Rising God mythological motif (Thompson A192) and James Frazer's _The Golden Bough_. Finally I have something where I can use my training in religious studies. Here we begin with some of the myth of the forest god...

The old legends say that the seasons change according to the life of the god of the forest. He is reclusive, rarely seen by mortals and his fellow deities alike. He is said to take the form of a white hart, and, capricious as the natural world he rules, the deer god may bless or curse whoever manages to cross his path.

The god prefers spring and summer to the colder months, and while he is present in his forest the world is warm and full of life. Wild pants bloom and grow, spring brings about newborn animals and the summer sun encourages the crops in the fields sown by mortals.

But his reign must end every year. The days grow shorter in anticipation of darkness and the leaves turn and fall and winter must arrive. To do this, the king of the forest must die.

The god is slain every year in the Hunt and his death ushers in winter’s cold and the earth goes to sleep. The deed is done by the god of the hunt, who tracks the stag through the forest and finally overtakes him, killing him swiftly and as gently as possible. Winter sets in and mortals must rely on their stored food and the blessings of the gods who concern themselves with human matters.

The forest god will rise again in springtime and with him the earth will be reborn.

As it is every year.


End file.
